1 Thes 1:6 And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Spirit, (7) So that you became a pattern to all those who believe in Macedonia and in Achaia.
Since the preachers were the model of the gospel, the believers became their imitators. This then led the believers to follow the Lord, taking Him as their model (Matt. 11:29). First the Thessalonians as new believers became imitators of the apostles, and then they became imitators of the Lord. This indicates that we need to be a pattern, a model, for others. The believers do not see the Lord first; they see us first. If we are not a proper pattern or model, it will be difficult for others to see the Lord. Because we are the Lord's representatives, we need to be a proper pattern. Then others can imitate the Lord by imitating us. This means that through us they imitate Him. In verses 7 and 8 Paul says, "So that you became a pattern to all those who believe in Macedonia and in Achaia. For from you the word of the Lord has sounded out, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith toward God has gone out, so that we have no need to speak anything." Here we see that the imitators of the apostles became a pattern to all other believers. They imitated the pattern and then they became a pattern to the believers in the Roman provinces of Macedonia and Achaia.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Thessalonians, pp. 13-14. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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